Database Reference
In-Depth Information
Figure 4.9:
A Collaboration model for travel. The yellow sticky notes attached to the model are the result of
a Wall Walk, described in the next section.
Personas
are treated as part of consolidation in Contextual Design. (Personas were first
describedbyCooperin
The Inmates are Running the Asylum
[
4
]andincorporatedintoCon-
textual Design in
Rapid Contextual Design
.) Personas are an effective way to characterize
users for people who did not go on field visits. They also act as a convenient summary for
designers, putting a face on the different types of users they must satisfy. They can act as a
focusingdevice—theteamcanagreetoconcentrateoncertainpersonasforthecurrentpro-
ject. Personas, like the new Contextual Design models, communicate information through
story—catchy, personal, with the emotional element built in. Because they are based on
field data, they have the depth and richness of real user experience behind them. But be-
cause they are presented as individual stories, they are simple to comprehend. We find that
personas tend to spark fewer design ideas than the models, but they are familiar and serve
as a good starting point for understanding who was interviewed by the team.
Figure 4.10:
One part of a consolidated Sequence model showing how people plan for travel. Note the mul-
tiple branches, showing different possibilities found in the actual data.
The Sensation model
is treated a little differently because it helps guide visual and indus-
trial designers in the overall aesthetic of the product rather than defining what the product
should do. Our experience with these designers shows that they can more easily design for
